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 TEA Science Director Forced to Resign
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the_ignored
SFN Addict

2562 Posts

Posted - 11/30/2007 :  06:35:16  Show Profile Send the_ignored a Private Message  Reply with Quote
Halfmooner had said here that:

Indeed, Filthy, they got nothing. Nothing but millions of dollars to spend in crude mockery and propaganda.



Unfortunately, that's not true. What they do have is political power. With that, they don't need anything else. The ID people in power in Texas forced out the Texas Education Agency Director of Science because she dared support a talk by Barbara Forrest about ID.

Check it out.

What the heck is wrong with Texas?

First, they get a creationist governor. Then their creationist governor appoints a creationist to head the State Board of Education.

And now, when Chris Comer, the Texas Education Agency's director of science curriculum, sends out an email announcing a talk by anti_creationism advocate Barbara Forrest, the TEA forces her to resign.



Phil has more here, as do the Texas Citizens for Science people, Panda's Thumb, etc!

The Texas Citizens for Science people seem to have the reason pegged:
The real reason she was forced to resign is because the top TEA administrators and some SBOE members wanted her out of the picture before the state science standards--the science TEKS--were reviewed, revised, and rewritten next year. Plans are underway by some SBOE members and TEA administrators to diminish the requirement to teach about evolutionary biology in the Biology TEKS and to require instead that biology instructors "Teach the Controversy" about the "weaknesses" of evolution, that is, teach the Creationist-inspired and -created bogus controversy about evolution that doesn't exist within legitimate science. There are no scientific weaknesses with biological evolution as the natural process is understood by scientists. At the level at which it is taught in high school, evolutionary biology has no weaknesses, gaps, or problems. Therefore, it is duplicitous to pretend such "weaknesses" and "controversy" exist.



PS: Here's a T-Shirt idea:

In which war the are the Republicans in are they actually winning?

a) the war on drugs -- X
b) the war on terrorism -- X
c) the war in Iraq -- X
d) the war on Science -- <check mark>



>From: enuffenuff@fastmail.fm
(excerpt follows):
> I'm looking to teach these two bastards a lesson they'll never forget.
> Personal visit by mates of mine. No violence, just a wee little chat.
>
> **** has also committed more crimes than you can count with his
> incitement of hatred against a religion. That law came in about 2007
> much to ****'s ignorance. That is fact and his writing will become well
> know as well as him becoming a publicly known icon of hatred.
>
> Good luck with that fuckwit. And Reynold, fucking run, and don't stop.
> Disappear would be best as it was you who dared to attack me on my
> illness knowing nothing of the cause. You disgust me and you are top of
> the list boy. Again, no violence. Just regular reminders of who's there
> and visits to see you are behaving. Nothing scary in reality. But I'd
> still disappear if I was you.

What brought that on? this. Original posting here.

Another example of this guy's lunacy here.

Edited by - the_ignored on 11/30/2007 07:00:02

chaloobi
SFN Regular

1620 Posts

Posted - 11/30/2007 :  07:03:02   [Permalink]  Show Profile  Send chaloobi a Yahoo! Message Send chaloobi a Private Message  Reply with Quote
You left out some key victories of the current administration:

e) war on freedom
f) war on competance
g) war on accountability
h) war on democracy

-Chaloobi

Edited by - chaloobi on 11/30/2007 07:03:29
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the_ignored
SFN Addict

2562 Posts

Posted - 11/30/2007 :  07:28:23   [Permalink]  Show Profile Send the_ignored a Private Message  Reply with Quote
True, true.

I could also have included
i) the war on the Separation of Church and State.


I guess the question would have to have more than one answer now, eh?

>From: enuffenuff@fastmail.fm
(excerpt follows):
> I'm looking to teach these two bastards a lesson they'll never forget.
> Personal visit by mates of mine. No violence, just a wee little chat.
>
> **** has also committed more crimes than you can count with his
> incitement of hatred against a religion. That law came in about 2007
> much to ****'s ignorance. That is fact and his writing will become well
> know as well as him becoming a publicly known icon of hatred.
>
> Good luck with that fuckwit. And Reynold, fucking run, and don't stop.
> Disappear would be best as it was you who dared to attack me on my
> illness knowing nothing of the cause. You disgust me and you are top of
> the list boy. Again, no violence. Just regular reminders of who's there
> and visits to see you are behaving. Nothing scary in reality. But I'd
> still disappear if I was you.

What brought that on? this. Original posting here.

Another example of this guy's lunacy here.
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Dave W.
Info Junkie

USA
26020 Posts

Posted - 11/30/2007 :  07:44:57   [Permalink]  Show Profile  Visit Dave W.'s Homepage Send Dave W. a Private Message  Reply with Quote
Starman also mentioned this in the Expelled thread.

People all over the blogosphere are wondering when Ben Stein will be showing up on Chris Comer's doorstep.

- Dave W. (Private Msg, EMail)
Evidently, I rock!
Why not question something for a change?
Visit Dave's Psoriasis Info, too.
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Starman
SFN Regular

Sweden
1613 Posts

Posted - 11/30/2007 :  08:40:05   [Permalink]  Show Profile Send Starman a Private Message  Reply with Quote
As can be found in many of the regular blogs, this isn't just an issue of one little backwards state firing one individual. This is about a sneak take over of the science standards of the second largest US state.

It wont even stop there. The state of Texas is a major buyer of text books in the US.
Stupidity is contagious.

"Any religion that makes a form of torture into an icon that they worship seems to me a pretty sick sort of religion quite honestly"
-- Terry Jones
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BigPapaSmurf
SFN Die Hard

3192 Posts

Posted - 11/30/2007 :  09:00:01   [Permalink]  Show Profile Send BigPapaSmurf a Private Message  Reply with Quote
Originally posted by Starman
It wont even stop there. The state of Texas is a major buyer of text books in the US.


For those who dont know, since Texas is so huge and pissing them off would impact profits, textbook authors tailor thier books to meet Texas's standards, those books are then used in other states.

"...things I have neither seen nor experienced nor heard tell of from anybody else; things, what is more, that do not in fact exist and could not ever exist at all. So my readers must not believe a word I say." -Lucian on his book True History

"...They accept such things on faith alone, without any evidence. So if a fraudulent and cunning person who knows how to take advantage of a situation comes among them, he can make himself rich in a short time." -Lucian critical of early Christians c.166 AD From his book, De Morte Peregrini
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chaloobi
SFN Regular

1620 Posts

Posted - 11/30/2007 :  13:02:42   [Permalink]  Show Profile  Send chaloobi a Yahoo! Message Send chaloobi a Private Message  Reply with Quote
Almost forgot:

J) War on the working poor
K) War on the middle class
L) War on international cooperation

Also - now why does backward Texas get away with revising history in science for our children and progressive California can't counter it? Oh, that's right, part of being progressive is you don't consider revising history and science.

-Chaloobi

Edited by - chaloobi on 11/30/2007 13:03:22
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Dude
SFN Die Hard

USA
6891 Posts

Posted - 12/02/2007 :  01:37:43   [Permalink]  Show Profile Send Dude a Private Message  Reply with Quote
For those who dont know, since Texas is so huge and pissing them off would impact profits, textbook authors tailor thier books to meet Texas's standards, those books are then used in other states.

With the ease of publishing books these days it shouldn't still be a problem. They can print specific numbers of books, and can very easily edit content for any number of books to be printed, from 1 to whatever. Publishers could sell one highly edited edition to the morons, and one accurate and complete edition to states who don't have their heads up their asses.


Ignorance is preferable to error; and he is less remote from the truth who believes nothing, than he who believes what is wrong.
-- Thomas Jefferson

"god :: the last refuge of a man with no answers and no argument." - G. Carlin

Hope, n.
The handmaiden of desperation; the opiate of despair; the illegible signpost on the road to perdition. ~~ da filth
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Dave W.
Info Junkie

USA
26020 Posts

Posted - 12/02/2007 :  10:57:18   [Permalink]  Show Profile  Visit Dave W.'s Homepage Send Dave W. a Private Message  Reply with Quote
Texas Citizens for Science has more details.

- Dave W. (Private Msg, EMail)
Evidently, I rock!
Why not question something for a change?
Visit Dave's Psoriasis Info, too.
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Randy
SFN Regular

USA
1990 Posts

Posted - 12/03/2007 :  17:34:36   [Permalink]  Show Profile Send Randy a Private Message  Reply with Quote
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/03/us/03evolution.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

Here's a New York Times article on the whole mess. Hopefully, one doesn't have to log on to view the article. I'm glad to see this injustice get some national attention. The more, the better. Texas governor Perry is a sack of shit to help this whole embarrassment along.

"We are all connected; to each other biologically, to the earth chemically, to the rest of the universe atomically."

"So you're made of detritus [from exploded stars]. Get over it. Or better yet, celebrate it. After all, what nobler thought can one cherish than that the universe lives within us all?"
-Neil DeGrasse Tyson
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the_ignored
SFN Addict

2562 Posts

Posted - 12/05/2007 :  18:09:43   [Permalink]  Show Profile Send the_ignored a Private Message  Reply with Quote
PZ Myers has posted a link to Dr. Forrest's statement on the whole deal.

She's a little ticked, but her point is proven: they do fear her.

>From: enuffenuff@fastmail.fm
(excerpt follows):
> I'm looking to teach these two bastards a lesson they'll never forget.
> Personal visit by mates of mine. No violence, just a wee little chat.
>
> **** has also committed more crimes than you can count with his
> incitement of hatred against a religion. That law came in about 2007
> much to ****'s ignorance. That is fact and his writing will become well
> know as well as him becoming a publicly known icon of hatred.
>
> Good luck with that fuckwit. And Reynold, fucking run, and don't stop.
> Disappear would be best as it was you who dared to attack me on my
> illness knowing nothing of the cause. You disgust me and you are top of
> the list boy. Again, no violence. Just regular reminders of who's there
> and visits to see you are behaving. Nothing scary in reality. But I'd
> still disappear if I was you.

What brought that on? this. Original posting here.

Another example of this guy's lunacy here.
Edited by - the_ignored on 12/05/2007 18:14:16
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Archereon
New Member

New Zealand
32 Posts

Posted - 12/05/2007 :  18:49:22   [Permalink]  Show Profile Send Archereon a Private Message  Reply with Quote
to get around unnessecary signing up for accounts, try www.bugmenot.com

[Edited to fix link - Dave W.]

West Ham Claret and Blue Army NZ div
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Randy
SFN Regular

USA
1990 Posts

Posted - 12/07/2007 :  16:26:06   [Permalink]  Show Profile Send Randy a Private Message  Reply with Quote
Here's Ben Sargent's take on the TEA debacle....

http://www.statesman.com/ap/mediahub/media/slideshow/index.jsp?tId=53329

Or, try here...
http://www.pbase.com/dwerbil/image/90016748/original.jpg

"We are all connected; to each other biologically, to the earth chemically, to the rest of the universe atomically."

"So you're made of detritus [from exploded stars]. Get over it. Or better yet, celebrate it. After all, what nobler thought can one cherish than that the universe lives within us all?"
-Neil DeGrasse Tyson
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Dave W.
Info Junkie

USA
26020 Posts

Posted - 12/09/2007 :  19:10:26   [Permalink]  Show Profile  Visit Dave W.'s Homepage Send Dave W. a Private Message  Reply with Quote
Florida Department of Education employee uses official email to crusade against evolution, fails to lose job. Go figure. So much more than a forwarded "FYI" email, yet employee cannot become martyr for Christ. How very strange.

Hat tip to Pharyngula.

- Dave W. (Private Msg, EMail)
Evidently, I rock!
Why not question something for a change?
Visit Dave's Psoriasis Info, too.
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Randy
SFN Regular

USA
1990 Posts

Posted - 12/09/2007 :  20:47:19   [Permalink]  Show Profile Send Randy a Private Message  Reply with Quote
I swear these religious wingnuts behave like crackheads doing anything for their drugs.

"We are all connected; to each other biologically, to the earth chemically, to the rest of the universe atomically."

"So you're made of detritus [from exploded stars]. Get over it. Or better yet, celebrate it. After all, what nobler thought can one cherish than that the universe lives within us all?"
-Neil DeGrasse Tyson
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HalfMooner
Dingaling

Philippines
15831 Posts

Posted - 12/09/2007 :  23:26:09   [Permalink]  Show Profile Send HalfMooner a Private Message  Reply with Quote
So what we basically have is an escalating Culture War, with most of it going on out of sight of the general public. We have casualties, they have casualties. At least there are few physical injuries or deaths so far, but one wonders how far this stuff will escalate.


Biology is just physics that has begun to smell bad.” —HalfMooner
Here's a link to Moonscape News, and one to its Archive.
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